Gas gangrene history and symptoms
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
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Overview
Gas gangrene causes very painful swelling. The skin turns pale to brownish-red. If you press on the swollen area with your fingers, you may feel gas as a crackly sensation. The edges of the infected area grow so quickly that changes can be seen over a few minutes. The area may be completely destroyed.
Symptoms
Symptoms include:
- Air under the skin (subcutaneous emphysema)
- Blisters filled with brown-red fluid
- Drainage from the tissues, foul-smelling brown-red or bloody fluid (serosanguineous discharge)
- Increased heart rate (tachycardia)
- Moderate to high fever
- Moderate to severe pain around a skin injury
- Pale skin color, later becoming dusky and changing to dark red or purple
- Progressive swelling around a skin injury
- Vesicle formation, combining into large blisters
- Yellow color to the skin (jaundice)
Note: Symptoms usually begin suddenly and quickly worsen.